Mirage

:This article is about mirage, an optical phenomenon. For other meanings, see Mirage (disambiguation).

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A mirage, derived from the Latin mirari, meaning 'to be astonished', is an optical phenomenon which often occurs naturally. The kind most commonly seen (known as inferior mirage, because the inverted image lies below the upright one) is produced by the refraction of light when it passes into a layer of warm air lying close to a heated ground surface. This is an example of gradient index optics.

Related Topics:
Latin - Optical phenomenon - Refraction - Gradient index optics

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In deserts, mirages may give the appearance of a lake or other large body of water in the distance; this is actually an image of the sky being refracted back up from the warm air lying over the sand. On tarmacked roads, mirages give the impression that distant objects are being reflected by a puddle of water on the road.

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